1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a connector. Furthermore, the invention relates to a jig and a method for withdrawing a terminal in a connector.
2. Description of the Related Art
FIG. 12 shows a male connector with a male housing 100 and female connector with a female housing 101. The male housing 100 has a receptacle 102 for accommodating the female housing 101. The female housing 101 has a retainer 103 for locking unillustrated terminal fittings. The retainer 103 can be mounted at a partial locking position, where the retainer 103 is assembled lightly with the female housing 101, and at a full locking position, where the retainer 103 is assembled deeply in the female housing 101 to lock the terminal fittings.
Housing ribs 104A, 104B project up or down from opposite left and right ends of upper and lower outer surfaces 105 of the female housing 101. The projecting ends of the housing ribs 104B on the lower surface are substantially flush with the bottom surface of the retainer 103 when the retainer 103 is at the partial locking position in the female housing 101 (see FIG. 13).
Connectors to be installed in a spatially limited place, such as an engine compartment of an automotive vehicle, sometimes must be small and thin to take up a small space. Under such a circumstance, receptacles of male housings may be made wide and short. Additionally, there has been ongoing progress in recent years to make terminal fittings and housings smaller and to have more contacts. Thus, the receptacle 102 has been made gradually thinner and has become easier to deform. Accordingly, the female housing 101 may undesirably fit into the receptacle 102, as shown in FIG. 13, even if the retainer 103 is at the partial locking position. This problem is likely to occur if the housings 100, 101 are connected in a visually obscured place, such as inside a control panel. In these situations, the connecting operation depends on the feeling of hands, and it is difficult to confirm by hand whether the retainer 103 is at the partial locking position or at the full locking position.
Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2000-223238 discloses a connector with a housing and a cavity in the housing. A terminal fitting is inserted into the cavity and is locked by a resiliently deflectable lock. A jig is used to detach the terminal fitting from the housing. The jig has an unlocking portion for deforming the lock and a terminal pushing portion for pushing the terminal fitting backward. The terminal pushing portion is formed integrally on a jig main body. However, the unlocking portion is separate from the jig main body and is assembled with the jig main body via a spring to move forward and back. The jig is inserted toward the lock and the unlocking portion of the jig deforms the lock to cancel the locked state of the terminal fitting. The terminal pushing portion then moves forward relative to the unlocking portion and pushes the terminal fitting out backward.
However, the above-described jig has a large number of parts, and hence has a complicated construction and a high cost.
The present invention was developed in view of the above problem and an object thereof is to provide a connector capable of preventing a housing from being erroneously connected with a mating housing when the housing and a retainer are located at a first position.